* The Following Story Contains: Mature Situations.

* Resident Evil & Cannon Characters (c) CAPCOM

* Any OC's Within 'Help Me' (c) AngelicSenpai

* Enjoy!

Chapter One: Don't Stare

The moonlight drifted over the window of the abandoned shed, causing Leon to shield his blood shot eyes. He regained his balance before shaking of his fatigued muscles. Leon turned his back to the wall and flopped down to the floor with an exhausted grunt. How long has this mission taken? The hours felt like days to him, which dragged out his deprived sleep. The current mission was to rescue the President's daughter and take her back home. Of course the mission was not and will not ever be that easy. Nothing ever was for Leon Kennedy. After running into a cult with a crazed leader; Leon had seen it all. Every move he has made they were three steps behind him making the mission even more stressful but he had no choice but to push through. Throughout the unfortunate events, Leon had managed to find an abandoned shed to catch his breath.

Heart racing.

Blood pumping.

Head throbbing.

He wanted to recover what was left of his strength but knew there was no time. Leon forced himself back to his aching feet, adjusted his equipment and headed for the door. That's when he noticed the flames surrounding outside of the shed. How could Leon not notice the flames before? Did the villagers track him down and decide to burn down the shed with him still inside? His heart raced with adrenaline as he reached out for the door handle and felt his finger tips burned. His teeth clenched as he forced to cover his scream of agony. 'God damn it!' If he could not open the door with his hand he had no other choice but to kick it down.

With a swift but hard kick to the door it flew off its hinges. Leon covered his mouth with his arm as he pushed through the flames. His eyes adjusted but something was terribly wrong. The flames he had through were around the shed were now roaring over a R.P.D. vehicle. He stood there for a moment completely confused and turned his direction to what seemed to be Raccoon City. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up as the groans filled the air. Leon looked down to his hands and noticed the R.P.D. logo across his uniform. 'Oh god no...'

How? And why?

Leon ran his fingers through his hair as his mind races with questions. A loud intense groan echoed from the alley to his left. His whole body tensed as the groan grew louder by the second. He clenched onto his handgun as he walked to the dark alleyway. There was a child hunched over a woman's body, what looked to be the child's mother. This child was in danger but the mother was already dead. Leon reached for the child's shoulder and his heart stopped. Inside the child's mouth were the intestines of the woman on the floor in front of them.

This was hell on earth.

No other choice but to take this zombie down even if it was a child. Leon's hand lifted up his handgun and the zombie rose to its feet. Snarling at Leon as the intestines feel from its disgusting blood stained mouth. The eyes of a monster staring him down to be its next meal. It's body twitched as Leon steps back as it tried to move closer, until it took its opportunity to lung at him.

BANG

Ice fell from the freezer to its dispenser which caused Leon to shoot up from the couch. The moreE ice that had tumbled down; made Leon flinch at the loud noise. His heart pounded against his chest which made him clench into his sweat covered shirt to calm down his harsh breathing. Background noise of the news buzzed through Leon's hears as his awareness adjusted to the living room. He must have dozed off while watching the TV. His hands covered his face as he groaned and he wipes the sweat off his brow.

His phone began to buzz on the coffee table and he couldn't help but groan. He glanced up at the clock on the phone and saw 4:35 pm on the dot. A few missed calls from Ashley Graham; he was going to hear it later and text messages from Kevin Ryman. If Leon's eyes were capable of rolling into his skull this would be the opportunity to do so. Kevin Ryman was also a fellow R.P.D. Officer as well as a survivor from Raccoon City. Plus he was a good friend of Leon's before the incident of Raccoon City, but as fate would have it Kevin somehow managed to find Leon. It was never a dull moment with Kevin which Leon greatly appreciated but he was still a pain in the ass sometimes.

Leon scrolled through the text messages in his inbox, ignoring the repeated and unnecessary ones. Another text message chimes in but this time it was from Ashley asking if he was going to come down to the bar later tonight. A loud sigh slipped through his lips, realizing he forgot she had even asked him to hangout tonight. Leon hasn't seen Ashley in a few months and he would seem like an asshole if he blew her off; groans continue. His finger nail tapped the screen of his phone impatiently as he tried to figure out this situation.

Why a bar of all places? Leon wasn't the type to attend bars regularly, he cannot dance, handle people trying to dance with him, or handle drunk idiots. The whole situation made Leon feel completely uncomfortable. On one hand it would be great to get out of the house for a bit, however, when Ashley gets drunk she gets flirty. Something Leon hated dealing with because he has turned her down plenty of times but Ashley is persistent. He opens up a new text message to reply to Ashley's message, telling her after a shower he will be there.

Nothing was more relaxing than a shower, Leon shut the door to the bathroom and disrobed. The water was hot but relaxed his muscles from his nightmare. Sleeping was something Leon loathed to do and would rather not have dreams at all. It would save him the headache. Leon stayed still under the water until his mind was clear from what had happened.

After a few minutes Leon was out of the shower and off to the bedroom to pick out his clothes for tonight. He opened up his closet and pushed aside shirts on the hangers, running his hand again all too familiar dark grey compression shirt. His hand pushes the shirt aside to continue to look for something decent to wear. There was a knock on the door and Leon's hand instinctively reached for a gun at his side, realizing he only stood in a towel. He clenched his hand into a fist and shook off the reflex.

He finally put some clothes on before heading towards the front door. With a deep breath, he opened the door to see Kevin standing there with a grin.

"Took you long enough, dude. I thought I was going to die of old age out here." Kevin joked.

"Why are you here?" Leon asked as he used the towel to dry off his hair.

"Well, you didn't answer my text messages so I decided to see if you were still alive. Can't be too careful." He boasted.

"Right."

Kevin went to the kitchen and opened up the fridge, "You going out tonight? Did Ashley invite you out again? Where to this time?"

"Ashley wants me to go see her at a bar. I'm not into it but she wants to see me." Leon sighed as he threw the towel into a hamper.

"Need me to be there? Cause the last time she got so drunk she tried to grab your di-"

"Kevin!"

Kevin pulls out a water from the fridge, "What? It's true though. I've seen her frisky little mitts. I'll be there as your support. It's a good thing I came by. Lucky you."

Leon grabbed the remote to turn off the TV and shook his head. Kevin was right though. Leon has a great friendship with Ashley but again she is over so persistent. "Fine, you can come with me. But you can't blame me if she gets mad that you are there."

"Got it." Kevin chuckles a bit. "Wait what bar does she want you to go to anyways?"

"Some bar named..." Leon looks down at his text messages. "The Rusty...Spoon...?"

"Aye! Perfect I have a friend playing there tonight." Kevin clapped his hands and laughed. "Perfect timing."

"What friend?" Leon raised an eyebrow.

"Old friend. She is part of a band that does covers or original music. Lead singer. Pretty face." Kevin make a clicking sound and winked. "Just a tip. Don't. Stare."

"What? Don't stare at what?" Leon squinted his eyes confused.

"Trust me, don't do it." Kevin threw his bottle in the trash. "If you want to make the show at the bar we should leave now."

"You didn't answer the question-"

Kevin grabbed the keys off the counter and threw them at Leon. "Come on, we're losing day light!"

} * * * {

After a long car ride, Leon and Kevin had finally found The Rusty Spoon Bar. Leon turned off the car and opened up the driver side door. Kevin slammed the passenger door and he stretched out his arms with a yawn. He took a deep breath before walking down the parking lot with Kevin, the place look decent from the outside. Leon squinted as he stared at the neon sign, Kevin tapped his shoulder and they both headed toward the door. The music was already pulsing through the door and Leon's head began to pound on impulse. Leon opened the door and was greeted with a blinding array of neon lights. His arm rose to shield his eyes as he grunted before Kevin stepped in front of him. This wasn't going to be the best night in the world but Leon had to deal with it.

The bar was bigger than Leon had thought it would be, large dance floor and a luxury bar that could seat plenty. Now Leon felt out of place and Kevin only made it worse being flirtatious with anything with a skirt. He scratched the back of his head with an awkward grunt.

"Leon~!" Ashley squeal from the other side of the bar. She got up from her seat to greet Leon with a hug. Ashley wore a plaid skirt with a v-neck blouse and Leon noticed the persistence again. "And Kevin..."

"Glad to see you too." Kevin makes a clicking sound.

Ashley holds a polite smile on her face but Leon knew she was boiling. "I'm glad you made it, Leon. I thought you weren't going to show."

"We got lost. Kevin said he knew where this place was but we got screwed up with directions. Plus he wanted to see his friend preform and she's in the band playing here." Leon scratched his head. "Have they played yet?"

"No, it's just been random music so far. Maybe soon." Ashley shrugged her shoulders.

"Sweet. I hope she plays my favorite song tonight." Kevin giddily smiled.

"And that song would be?" Ashley crossed her arms.

"She does an amazing Evanescence covers, they are to die for." Kevin sighs with a grin. "She-"

"Sounds very interesting..." Ashley rolled her eyes and turned her attention toward Leon. "Soooo, how have you been doing? Good I hope."

"Eh, I've been alright. Vacation time isn't what I'm used to, y'know? I feel restless that's all." Leon shrugged his shoulders. "And yourself?"

"I've been busy with college and such. Nothing too fancy to report. Just boring life." Ashley flirted. "We should hang out more when you have the chance. I hate having to meet up months later."

"Yeah..." So. Persistent.

Leon sat down at the bar between Ashley and Kevin while they order drinks. He declined Ashley's offer from ordering beer because he knows he had to drive back home and make sure Kevin doesn't pass out later. The bartender looked at him weird when he ordered a Coke but Leon didn't mind. As time went by the music seemed to get louder and louder in Leon's eardrums, making his temples pulse. His fingers rubbed against his forehead.

"You alright?" Ashley asked.

Leon smiled at her and drank his soda. "Yeah, I'm okay. Just kind of loud in here. Don't worry about it."

"Do you want to step outside to get some fresh air? I'll come with you." Ashley asked as she placed her hand on his.

Kevin peeked over Ashley's shoulder to see what she was doing. "Aye, come on! The band is about to start. We gotta head to the front."

"Leon isn't feeling good."

Leon shook his head, "I'll be alright. Kevin really wants me to see his friend preform."

"Let's go."

Kevin motioned for Leon and Ashley to get out of their seats. They both follow Kevin through the crowd of people on the dance floor. The music began to slow down as they reached the front. It wasn't a small stage, it was enough for whoever to move around freely in. Slowly the band equipment was being assembled on stage and Kevin hummed under his breath. Ashley wasn't the happiest to be in the front but she wasn't leaving any time soon.

The last piece of equipment was set down and that's when she showed up. A woman in a leather jacket with a flattering skirt and tang top that hugged her curves. Her long platinum blond hair pushed to one side of her shoulder, exposing her skull earrings. Makeup that fit her style and probably her personality as well, Leon guessed. Although something was off when she walked. Every step she had taken was followed by a slight limp. Until she finally turned her body toward the neon lights that's when Leon noticed why he was told not to stare. Her left coat arm was flat which only meant she was missing her left arm. Leon's heart pumped against his chest as his eye contact drifted to her right leg, down to past her knee was a prosthetic.

Kevin hit Leon in the arm, "Don't stare too hard. It ain't polite."

"You could have warned me." Leon whispered. "Who is she...?"

"Her name is Rose Maria Ramos but she prefers Rose. She'll deck you if you say Maria. She is a song writer, singer, and sweet heart. I've known her for a long time." Kevin crossed his arms with a smile.

The band members began to take their positions on stage while Rose adjusted her microphone. She noticed Kevin right away as he waved his hand, she gave him a wink in return. Kevin clenched his chest with a sigh and laughed at himself. Leon rolled his eyes at him but cracked a smile at his attempts to swoon her.

"Is she your girlfriend?" Ashley asked.

"Who? Rose? She is too young for me. I'm my mid 30s. I'm not THAT confident to have such a catch like her. She's a great friend to have though." Kevin sighs with a smile.

"How did she lose her arm and leg?" Ashley whispered quietly.

"Not my place to say. That's her business, y'know?" Kevin shrugged his shoulders. "She doesn't let what happened to her stop her from what she want to do."

"That's good for her," Ashley looked back towards Rose, "She's pretty, I guess..."

"Yeah..." Leon said under his breath.

Leon couldn't take his eyes off her.

The dance floor lights began to dim slowly and suddenly all instruments boom. Guitar along with bass and followed by a confident drum pace. Rose moved her hips to the beat as the instruments lasted for a few more seconds. Her fingers wrap around the microphone and with a smile as pulled it from its stand. Everyone in the crowd jumped up and cheered along with the band

"I tried to kill the pain. But only brought more." A small back up vocals chimes in with 'So much more'. "I lay dying and I'm pouring. Crimson regret and betrayal."

They held up their hands while enjoying the music. Leon watched Rose as she continued to sing, her expressions matching the tone of the song.

"I'm dying, praying. Bleeding and screaming."

Leon's body tensed up

"Am I too lost to be saved? Am I too lost?" Rose tapped her heel along with the intense beat of the tempo. "My God, my tourniquet! Return to me salvation! My God, my tourniquet Return to me salvation!"

Her eyes were scanning the room as she sang but landed on Leon. "Do you remember me?"

"Lost for so long..."

His heart pounded.

"Will you be on the other side?"

His mouth felt dry.

"Or will you forget me?"

Leon froze for a moment, the lyrics made a chill run down his spine. The music continues until the repeated chorus but Leon wasn't paying attention. His mind was stuck on those lyrics making his whole body shake. He turned around to push himself out of the crowd and away from the intense pounding in his head. It felt as if time was moving in a slow pace as Leon tried to get out of the crowd. Bodies illuminated in the neon flashing light and undefined faces only getting blurred. It was too intense for him to handle at the moment. All he wanted fresh air to catch his breath. He grabbed the door handle but felt someone grab his shoulder.

"Leon? What's the matter?" Kevin asked concerned.

"I need some air." He sighed while he pushed open the front door.

Both of them step outside and Leon sits down on a bench near the wall. He sat down with a loud sigh before rubbing his face. Kevin took a seat next to him, watching him with a frown.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean for you to be taken away from your friend's performance." Leon grumbles under his breath. "I look like a dick."

"Don't worry about it. I needed a smoke break anyways. Plus Rose will understand." Kevin pulled a cigarette from his pocket and flicked his lighter to light the tip.

"Horrible habit."

"Shuddap!" Kevin rolled his eyes.

"Where is Ashley?" Leon mumbled.

"Baby Spice? She noticed you left but I told her I was going to check on you." Kevin inhaled and exhaled a puff of smoke.

"I hate this." Leon groaned again.

Kevin shook his head and blew his smoke away from Leon. "How bad was it this time?"

"I had a nightmare before you came to my house. I was back in a mission where I had to save Ashley but it was different. One moment I was in a shed, it was on fire and the next I was back in Raccoon City. I was forced to watch a child that was now a zombie, eating its former mother. It lunged at me and I had to shoot it." Leon scratched his head. "I can't shake it off."

"That's nuts. I'm sorry you have to go through that." Kevin flicked the ashes off the cigarette. "When I was in the middle of Raccoon City it was unbelievable. No one could have imagined that shit coming out. Fucking awful."

"Where were you again when it started?" Leon asked.

"Ironically a bar. We thought some crazy guy walked in and before we knew it he bit down on the throat of a male server. It was crazy. All of us that survived still shivered at the image." Kevin inhaled more smoke. "That shit haunts me."

"When Rose was singing there were a few lyrics that hit me. It made me feel exposed." Leon leaned back against the wall.

"Exposed?"

"I don't know how to describe it. Her eyes were looking into mine but it felt like she could see through me. It sounds stupid. I don't know why it shook me up so badly." He sighed.

Kevin nudged Leon's shoulder. "Was it like her undressing you with her eyes?"

Leon scowled. "No."

"Joking aside though, I understand what you are saying. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to go out to a bar." Kevin put out his cigarette on the bottom of his boot. "Next time maybe pizza and a relaxing movie at home. Not at some bar that doesn't have all that great service."

"Yeah. Next time I'll do that." Leon smiled to himself.

"However, you do need to be around people more. It's not good to be isolated all the time."

"I will..."

Kevin stayed with Leon in order to get him to relax more. Not realizing how much time has passed by they notice part of the band members walking out to load up their van. They both watched as one of the band members struggled with fitting the equipment evenly. Kevin shook his head with a chuckle and walked over to help the poor guys out. Leon smiled to himself as he watched them all struggle now. Out of the corner of his eye out walked Rose. She walked over to Kevin and gave him a hug. They both hugged for a moment but Leon looked away with a grunt.

The door opened again but this time Ashley walked out. She smiled at Leon as she handed him a water bottle. "Here you go."

"Thank you. I'm sorry I ruined the night. I needed some fresh air." Leon explained.

"Don't apologize. I totally get it. Bars aren't your thing. Now I know." She smiled. "I hope you are okay now."

"Yeah..."

"Aye, both of you! Get your asses over here and be friendly!" Kevin called out.

Leon got off the bench and walked over with Ashley toward Kevin. His heart pounded against his chest as he stood next to Rose.

"You are so loud Kevin..." Ashley groaned.

"It's in my nature." Kevin raised his brow. "Alright, this is Leon and Ashley. This is Rose. There now you all have met."

"Pleasure to meet you both." Rose smiled and looked at Leon. "Oh, you're the one that left during the first song. Kevin told me you got light headed. I'm sorry. Are you alright now?"

"I...I'm alright. Thanks for asking." Leon smiled but couldn't help but blush. "I did like your music."

"Thank you. Maybe I can sing for you more sometime." Rose winked at him.

Ashley's inner green monster was booming, she didn't speak but you could feel the tension. Kevin chuckled at her for a moment and turned to Rose.

"You said you needed a ride? How'd you get here if the band car was full?" Kevin asked.

"Taxi." Rose rolled her eyes. "Can you give me a lift?"

"Well my car is back at Leon's. It's up to Leon cause it's his car. Cause I can give you a lift when we get back to his place." Kevin smirked at Leon. "So?"

Leon's heart raced. "Of course."

} * * * {

Leon and Kevin said their goodbyes to a cranky Ashley before heading out. Kevin took the back seat to catch up on a nap while Rose sat in the front seat. They have been driving for awhile in an awkward silence and Leon was squirming a bit in his seat. Kevin's snoring was slowly getting louder as the minutes went by and Rose only laughed. Rose leaned her hand over to play with the radio and turned up the volume enough to drown out Kevin.

"I'm sorry. I don't mean to touch your radio but it's needed right now. Y'know, to drown out the bear in the backseat." She giggled. "I hope you don't mind."

"I don't mind at all." Leon mentally sighed, finally she spoke. "So how do you know Kevin?"

"Long story." Rose said while playing with her left arm coat. "How do you know him?"

"We've been friends for maybe 10 years now?" Leon chuckled. "It sometimes feels longer than that."

"You both seem like great friends. Kevin talks very highly of you." She sighed with a smile. "You have two years more on me. I've only known him for maybe 8 years."

"Be glad it isn't longer," Leon chuckled softly. "So how long have you been in a band? Must be exciting."

"I've been with the band for a few years now but we aren't trying to become famous. We do it because we love it. Sometimes we do it for charity which is awesome. But the last band I was in only cared about fame and fortune. So I left." She shrugged her shoulders and smiled. "So what about you? What do you do?"

"Uh..." Leon paused. "Things..."

"Aww come on. Are you a police officer? Military? You have that feel about you." Rose gently tapped him shoulder. "Secret agent?"

Leon froze for a moment until she began to laugh. "It's okay. You don't have to tell me. We just met and I don't want to pry."

"Thank you." Leon relaxed his hands on the steering wheel. "But I don't think you a prying. You're just curious."

"Of course. You seemed to be an interesting person. Kevin talks about you a lot. I'm glad I could finally met you."

"What did he say about me? Should I be concerned?" Leon raised an eyebrow.

Rose giggled. "No,no. He talks about how courageous you are and how strong you are. That your heart is full of gold. When ever he talked about you it always made him smile." Rose's hand gently touched Leon's leg. "I hope one day I can get to know you more."

His heart began to race from her touch and he bite his lip discreetly. A loud yawn came from the back seats and followed by a groan. Kevin wiped his eyes and sat up in this seat. Rose moves her hand off of Leon's thigh and she smiled at him. They reached Leon's house after another few moments of Kevin's cracking jokes and stories.

Leon wished Kevin stayed asleep a little while longer.

Leon parked the car in the drive way and opened his door. He moved around the car to open up Rose's door, and she took his hand and stepped out with a smile. Kevin got out of the back seat and stretched his arms.

"Alright, ready to go Rose?" Kevin asked as he pulled out his keys.

"Ready as I'll ever be." She laughed. "I'm going to say goodnight to Leon real quick."

"I'll warm up the car. Night Leon." Kevin waves before getting into his car.

Leon scratched the back of his head and looked at Rose. "You get home safe okay?"

She grabbed his hand and wrote down her number on his palm. Leon's cheeks flustered as she smiled at him before planting a kiss on his cheek. "I hope to hear from you."